Lying, Leaving, and Learning
by lasweetie
Summary: Maia Volturi learns that her father isn't who she thought he was. On her quest for freedom, though, she realizes she isn't who she thought she was either. Sequel to "Emerald Amongst Rubies
1. My Ludicrous Lot in Life

**A/N: **_For those of who who don't know what this is, it's a sequel to my story "An Emerald Amongst Rubies". I suggest you read that first, so you know what's going on :) This story is exclusively about Maia, and her journey away from the Volturie. Ok, I just couldn't wait to post this! I love this story (what I've written so far) so much and I wanted to share it with you. I hope that those of you who enjoyed "Emerald" will enjoy this story just as much (if not more!) Thanks to Clairehasdimples for encouraging me to actually post this and for REVIEWING EVERY CHAPTER! *hinthint* Let's get started!_

**_Stephenie Meyer owns all Twilight. No infringement intended_**

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I sometimes wonder how different life would have been if I wasn't born a half-vampire. Not that I didn't like the lot in life I was given, I loved it. Everything was so simple in my life. Everyone bought my clothes, the finest fabrics and most decadent designs. My memory was perfect and I was almost as smart as my dad, Aro (which he would probably disagree with). I had a beautiful garden where I could coax any flowers into being. And I had the unending love of dozens of immortal vampires, my friends and family, and my boyfriend, Felix.

But I still wonder, what would I have? I guess, at the age of ten, I would still be small, and probably stupid. Maybe the next-door-neighbor and I would throw rocks at each other, while our parents exchanged knowing glances. And maybe I would struggle in school, getting average grades because I'd rather throw rocks than study. My clothes would probably be less fancy, more practical, for the small village life of a ten year old girl. Even though, to most, that life sounds sucky compared to what I have, I probably would trade mine for it any day of the week.

The day I stopped growing was the day the trouble started. It was like the slight rumble that turns into an earthquake. When I awoke the next morning, I saw that Savio was arguing with my dad, a very rare occurrence. Nobody, except maybe Caius or Jane, ever argued with Aro, so seeing Savio yell at him was just… wrong. I didn't really understand the argument, neither of them said names. Eventually Savio made his point, he wanted to leave. Aro wouldn't let him, and he stormed off. I think that's about when I started to feel the nerves start in my stomach.

Felix told me to ignore it. I listened to him, he knew better than me. I mean, he had been around for at least two hundred years longer than me, I assumed that this kind of grumbling happened from time to time. I was wrong, of course, nobody _in_ the Volturi ever wanted out of it, _ever_. But of course, why tell me that? I'm not important or anything.

The rumbling stopped when trouble with some Indian vampires arose. Felix and Demetri had tried to settle the conflict rationally; they had been there for weeks. Felix came back quickly one night, a month before my tenth birthday, much to my happiness.

"J!" He rushed into my bedroom, where I was reading Madame Bovary and pulled me into his huge arms. I was so happy I couldn't do anything but give a small squeak of joy. We had never been apart for more than two days, and it had already been a month. "Oh J, I missed you so much!" He pulled me back and kissed me lightly on the lips. I giggled like a four year old, mainly because his kisses left me a little speechless.

I recovered in time to say, "What're you doing in my room Felix? My dad would kill you if he knew you were in here!"

"Well how's 'bout we just don't tell him then." Felix winked and pulled me down more on the bed, so we were lying down. He kissed me with more passion, his loneliness becoming apparent. His hand started to move up my chest and I pushed him away.

"Whoa there partner! That's enough of that!" Felix chuckled and pulled away, moving to lie next to me. I was glad that he respected my boundaries, which were between my shoulders and my knees. He took my hand chastely in his and kissed my fingers. We sat in silence for an hour, gazing goofily into each others' eyes.

"J, I want to talk to you about something serious." I was suspicious; Felix slid off the bed and stood next to me.

"Go ahead."

He took a deep breath before he began to speak. "We've been best friends since the day you were born, basically. And these past three years, they've been the best in my life." I beamed at him; it was the same for me. "You've changed me so completely, J. I was this notorious flirt before, always trying to get into everyone's pants. But you changed that. You made me respect women and- and especially you. I… I really love you J. I know we have an eternity together, and I guess I just want to make sure I never lose you." He sunk to one knee and I gasped. I shot up, standing in front of Felix. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a black velvet box. My eyes began to water and my hands covered my gaping mouth.

"Will you marry me, Maia?" He opened the box and a huge diamond caught my eye. I knew quite a bit about jewelry, my mother's fault, and this one was over-the-top. It must have cost the same as the annual budget of Andorra. Felix smiled at my shock. "You deserve the best, baby." I held out my hand and he slipped the giant diamond onto it. Before he did, I noticed the inscription on the silver band, _per sempre_, forever. I giddily examined it, throwing my arms around his large frame afterwards.

"Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!" With each word, I kissed his cheeks, lips, forehead, anywhere on his face.

With a booming laugh he shouted, "She said yes!" I heard cheers erupt around the castle and my cheeks burned red. My father ran into the room, smiling even wider than I was. He didn't speak as he tore me from Felix's arms and hugged me fiercely. I was surprised by his happiness; he didn't exactly hide his dislike of Felix and me together. Maybe he was just excited that Felix wasn't going to shamelessly flirt with everyone anymore. Whatever the reason, Aro made the face he made when he cries without tears. I patted his cheek and pulled myself from his arms. As soon as I was free though, Felix swept me into his arms and carried me to the tower.

Awaiting there was the whole guard, cheering and clapping and singing and generally acting like buffoons. Felix set me down to allow the throng of well-wishers to attack me. I gave him a glare before Sulpicia pulled me into her arms, but he only smiled. Sometimes, he could be truly evil.

Then again, I was used to attention. Growing up in the Volturi was not exactly an isolated lifestyle. For one, I was the _only_ one growing, so there was that. And, every member of the guard seemed to want to observe that growth at every moment. They relished being able to stare at me for an hour and actually _see_ my hair grow. I thought that once all of that stopped, when I finally reached my full immortal body, they wouldn't be so fascinated. I was wrong, of course.

"Oh you'll be the most stunning bride, darling!" Sulpicia examined the stone then kissed my cheeks in joy. I forced a smile for her; after all she was my mother. Sort of. I never told her, and I didn't plan on telling her, I never really thought of her as my mother. She was my father's wife, someone who I cared about deeply, but she just wasn't my mother. Since I had found out that she wasn't my flesh and blood, if you will, I couldn't let my mind think of her like that. Aro knew how I felt, and I think it secretly made him happy. He enjoyed the idea of being my only parent, and I didn't mind it much either.

The crowd of happy vampires began to dwindle as the novelty of hugging me and grabbing my left hand wore off. They wanted to pump me with champagne to celebrate, but I declined. They tended to live vicariously through me, mostly by getting me drunk. Eventually I stole away from the room at the instant nobody was looking. I found myself on a balcony, over looking our Italian countryside. I leaned against the balustrade and put my head in my hands. I wanted to think.

A slight tap on my shoulder interrupted my about to be pensive thoughts. Aro, of course. I knew he'd want to talk to me. He mimicked my position and watched the hills as I did.

"_Caramia_," he said softly, taking my hand in his. "I'm so very happy this day has come." I saw in his thoughts that this was true. But of course it was, my dad never lied to me. "Felix came home and asked my permission; I was only too joyous to oblige." He turned to me and smiled. I smiled back, his happiness made me happy, too. "The thought of you all in white, ahh, you'll truly be an angel, _mia_. And Sulpicia is so excited to start planning it."

"Whoa, what?" I pulled back and stood up. "Start planning it? Now?! I mean, it's gonna be awhile before we get married!" Felix came onto the balcony as I spoke, and his face was crestfallen. Apparently, they were on a different track on this whole wedding thing than I was.

Aro was definitely startled by my reaction. "Of course we're going to start planning now! How else will the wedding happen in the fall?"

"THE FALL!" I shrieked. "Whoa, whoa, whoa there! I'm not getting married anytime soon! I mean, just cause we got engaged doesn't mean that the wedding has to be soon." I looked at Felix, who seemed to be on the verge of tears. "We have a whole eternity, right? I may not look it, but I'm only ten years old, definitely not ready to actually walk down the aisle. Maybe we could wait a year, or two?" Or ten or twenty. It wasn't that I didn't want to get married, obviously I would have said no if I didn't want to, just that this year seemed so sudden. One moment I'm just a regular-Jane-half-vampire, and the next I'm Mrs. Felix Volturi. Mrs. Maia Volturi. Well that did have somewhat of a ring to it, but that's not the point.

"You know, you're right J," Felix said, putting his large hands around mine. "We can wait, right Aro? No need to rush into things. Let's _savor_ the engagement for awhile." I blushed because I knew exactly how he'd want to "savor" our engagement. Aro cleared his throat and smiled. It was forced, I could see that easily, but I didn't call him on it. I could see determination in his eyes. I also could see that he was going to get his way. Oh well, I figured I could just pretend that I was in control of my wedding date.

Aro clapped Felix on the back and left us on the balcony. Felix's expression turned somber, unusual for him. "What's wrong? I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings it's just-" Felix stopped me mid-sentence with a breath-taking kiss. I could get used to that kind of interruption. I was really getting into the kiss when he pulled away.

"J, I have to go back to India in two days."

I breathed out my surprise and a few expletives. Felix nodded and pulled me in closer to him, resting his chin on my head. I thought that a month without him was torture, but to be reunited and then torn apart again was way worse. "You can't," I whined. I tried to stop the fire hot tears from coming, but they were already half-way down my cheeks and on his shirt before I noticed them. He adjusted his head and kissed the top of mine with force. It was a little comforting to know that he'd be crying if he could.

"I don't want to, you know that. But Demetri and I couldn't fix things. I came back to get the rest of the guard. There're a lot more newborns than we thought and we can't control all of them." I nodded into his strong chest and let him pull his arms tighter around me. "I'll be back as soon as possible, I promise."

I muttered, "Ok," into his chest. We stood in our embrace for an hour, until I thought I was going to fall asleep on my feet. As I started to pull away, he automatically knew what I needed, and he lifted me into his arms. He carried me to my room, one hand stroking my hair and the other supporting my body. My hands wrapped around his neck and I snuggled into his sweater, enjoying his smell. All too soon, we were at my room, and he set me down on my bed. He kissed my forehead and then my lips, and made to leave.

"Don't go, please don't go." He turned back and smiled brightly. He climbed into my bed with me, pulling my covers around me. His cold hand moved my shirt slightly in the process, and he rested his fingers on my bare stomach. I didn't gasp from the contact; I was more than used to the cold skin of vampires. But I shivered in delight and formed my body into his. I fell asleep instantly.

The next morning, Felix was still there, as close to sleep as a vampire gets. His face was in my hair, his eyes closed serenely. I turned my head and he sat up slowly.

"Good morning, J. How'd you sleep?"

"Great, seeing as you were there." I smiled and kissed him, even though I had morning breath. It figures, of all the human traits to keep, morning breath was one of them. I pulled myself from the bed and went to change. I wanted to work in my garden, so I picked out my grungy jeans and dirt covered t-shirt. I left the room, barely noting that Felix had left, and ran down to my escape.

I turned the giant key in its lock and pushed open the heavy doors easily. In the morning sun, my flowers looked particularly dazzling. I smiled at them and their dew covered petals. I got to work immediately, but slowly. I could have done all of my usual morning tasks in about two minutes, but I preferred to enjoy the time with them. I smelled each one, taking in its specific smell. I moved around the garden for an hour, stopping to smell the roses, if you will. Then I heard voices coming from the castle.

I left the gate to my garden open and I ran out of it. Savio was embracing Aro, a bag at his feet. _He's leaving_, I thought. I couldn't say that I was exactly heartbroken about that. Savio never seemed to like me, no matter what I tried. If he was so unhappy in Volterra, he should leave. He didn't deserve the happiness that was here if he was going to complain. I watched Savio run swiftly away. Aro suddenly looked at the ground and picked something up.

"Savio, you forgot your passport!" Aro called quietly, knowing Savio could hear him. But the vampire didn't respond. Aro turned towards me and smiled, then took off into the forest after him. I turned and went back into my garden. I was almost finished watering the plants, but I didn't want to go back inside yet. I wasn't sure how the others would take Savio's departure. I wanted to let them settle before I came back. I continued with my tasks in the peaceful sun, but I heard screaming.

I swept from my garden again, to see Aro dragging a female vampire with him. She screamed and screamed, and strangely, she called Savio's name. I made to follow them, but I realized who it was. The woman who used to haunt my dreams and nightmares. The woman who I had never actually met. The woman who was supposed to be dead.

My mother.

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_Review?_


	2. The Life and Lies of Domitilla

**A/N:**_ Hello again! Here's the second chapter that some of you have been waiting for! Remember this is T, so there's some stronger language, but not much. I hope that I rated it correctly. Thanks to Clairehasdimples(eth) for continuing to help me with this story(eth) and to those of you who put this on your favorites or alerts! I do it for you!_

**_Stephenie Meyer owns the Twilight-verse_**

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I was rooted to the spot. I couldn't even move to breathe. In a petrified silence, I watched Aro pull my mother into the castle, and then the blur that Savio was rush after them. For three minutes at least I stayed frozen. Then another shriek pushed me into action.

The tower was packed. Of course every other Volturi vampire had heard the woman's cries. She sat in the center of the room, and Aro paced furiously. Caius had the nerve to smile slightly. Marcus though, he actually looked a bit worried. I must have got there right after Savio did because he was pulling the woman up, trying to leave. But Aro had no intention of letting them escape.

"DON'T YOU FUCKING DARE!" I had never heard my father curse before, but then again, I had never seen him this angry. Two guards shut the door and I pinned myself against it, trying to breathe. Savio gave up on his escape plans and instead crouched over the woman.

Aro roared, "WHY IS SHE STILL ALIVE?" Savio didn't answer. He instead whispered in Italian to her, quieting her sobs. Aro motioned with a finger; Felix and Demetri pulled the vampires apart, holding them a few feet from each other. Savio fought with Felix, but he held strong.

"Answer me Savio! You told me that she died! I saw it in your thoughts!" Savio still remained silent. Aro threw his arms into the air and then turned to the woman.

"Domitilla, how nice to see you," Aro had moved in front of the woman, Domitilla, and he spoke softly. The sweetness in his voice gave me chills. The vampire looked up at him. I moved slowly so I could see her better. "Now, can you tell me why you aren't dead, as Savio here said you were?"

"Well," she began to speak in a nymph's voice. I was entranced. "After the birth, Savio began to change me. He put me in the cabin that was supposed to be for my change. Once I had finished, he told…" She faltered. The jerk of her head to meet Savio's eyes told me why. She didn't want to get him in trouble. Aro patiently turned her head back to face him.

"Now, Domitilla, how can I help you two if you don't tell me the truth?"

"He told me that he had lied to you. That it was safer if you thought I was dead. So I stayed in the cabin, except to hunt. I killed animals, because he said that you wouldn't catch me if I didn't drink human's blood."

"For ten years?" asked Aro, unbelieving. Domitilla nodded. Finally, I was behind Aro, facing her.

She looked just like me. Or, rather, I looked just like her. She had long, thick, dark brown hair. Her lips were full like mine, and her eyes were the same shape. But they were gold, a liquid gold that I'd never seen before. She looked past Aro for a brief second and then saw me. She gasped. Aro turned around and seemed shocked that I was there as well.

"Domitilla, this is Maia, _my_ daughter." Domitilla breathed out and pulled against Demetri's arms. Aro gave a small nod and she was let go. She walked up to me, resting a hand on my cheek. I didn't flinch away from the touch. Somehow, it just felt right. Maybe this is what adopted kids feel like when they meet their biological parents. I didn't feel empty before, not by any stretch, but now I felt complete. The dreams I had of her then green eyes punctured my soul. And now, her hand stitched them up. In that moment I also knew that Aro must have been mistaken, Domitilla loved me. I shocked myself when I realized that I loved her, too.

She was only in front of me for a second, before Demetri grabbed her again. She didn't fight though. Her eyes bore into mine. I wanted to talk to her, to get to know her, but Aro had captured her attention again. "Did he say how he lied to me? I can read minds, Domitilla, and his showed him burying you."

"With his thoughts. That's his power." Aro's jaw dropped.

"He can change his thoughts?" he hissed. Domitilla nodded. He rounded on Savio, who finally spoke up.

"I needed to protect her from you and these monsters!"

Aro asked calmly, "Why do you care?"

But Savio didn't answer. Domitilla did. "Before you changed him, we were engaged. He disappeared with no note, nothing. Two months later, I got a short letter from him, apologizing. When he bumped into me on the street, he told me he came back for me. Then everything started happening." She gave a small sob and slumped in Demetri's arms, in defeat.

"I don't understand," I said quietly. Every eye snapped to me, of course. "Why did you wait around for ten years? Why didn't you just tell the truth, that you were in love?"

Domitilla replied, knowing the question was for her. "Savio was trying to leave the Volturi. He had to do it little by little, so Aro wouldn't suspect. We were afraid that if Aro knew, he wouldn't let us leave, especially with Savio's gift. Today we were finally going to be free."

"And besides, if I had told the truth, Aro would have wanted her more! You've always wanted what you couldn't have!" Savio tried again to pull away from Felix. I was shocked by his words; nobody talked about Aro like that.

Aro appeared to be sad, more like how I knew him. "Savio, you could have told me. I would have changed her instead of putting her through so much! I would have righted everything." I found myself nodding with him. This was the father I knew, benevolent and kind.

Savio though was enraged by his words. "You think I wanted this for her? She's the love of my life; I didn't want her to be a monster! The idea of her being like you sickens me! I tried my best to hide her away so you couldn't do anything to her! Then you had to go and put another monster in her, and force me to change her!" Aro bared his teeth and made another motion with his hands. Felix released him, but four other guards attacked him. I watched the flames, transfixed. Savio didn't shout much, but Domitilla let out a blood-curdling scream. It was over in a few seconds. The whole of the guard looked down, silent and somber, well not all of them. As usual, Jane appeared happy about the violence and Caius as well.

The guard members who killed Savio swept out of the room, the remains between them. Domitilla didn't stop her shouting, even when Aro yelled at her to stop. I felt tears fall into my open mouth. I had never seen my father kill somebody. I wasn't even allowed into the tower during meals, I still drank blood from the stores below. It just didn't make sense, why would Aro kill someone? He was such a pacifist. It made me sick just thinking about it. Really sick, I ran from the room so I wouldn't barf in front of everyone.

Thankfully, Felix didn't follow me. I laid my head on the rim of my toilet, waiting for the nausea to pass. I had only thrown up once before and that was because I ate five pounds of candy and drank a liter of blood in one sitting. Not pretty. I flushed the toilet weakly and sort of plopped myself on the floor. I don't know how long I stayed there. I know that it was well after Domitilla's crying had stopped. The whole castle was still.

The light the came in through the high window of my bathroom changed. I could tell it was getting closer to sunset now; I figured that I should venture out and see what was going on. It appeared that everyone was in their rooms; every hall I went through was empty. I climbed up and down stairs, trying to find anyone, but I guess they were avoiding me. My stomach grumbled and I remembered that I hadn't eaten that day. I went down the nearest flight of stairs, hoping to get to my blood store.

Instead I found a hallway that I'd never seen before. At the end, a giant black door, the dungeon. Every castle has a dungeon, but I'd never been particularly jazzed up to see the cells so I stayed away. _Maybe everyone's down here_, I mused as I made my way down the passage. I pulled open the door with ease; we must have kept it well-oiled. As I walked down the corridor, cells on either side, I became very frightened. I had never really been afraid much before, for obvious reasons. But fear almost took over me as I looked in every cell, trying to find someone. Every one was empty, except the last on the left. In the middle of a grimy cell sat my mother, Domitilla.

"Maia? What're you doing down here," her voice was hoarse and she pushed against her temples like she was pushing away a headache.

I was too shocked to say anything but, "What are you doing down here?"

"They put me down here after you left."

"Who? I'll go talk to Aro, he'll let you out-" She let out a scornful laugh.

"Aro was the one who put me down here." I leaned against the wall opposite the bars that held her in. I couldn't believe that my father would lock an innocent woman up. _Then again, he killed a man for trying to leave_, said a small voice in my head. I ignored it and moved to sit next to the cold bars. Domitilla moved too, we were practically sitting next to each other.

She said in a small voice, "You turned out so beautiful Maia." I blushed, but she continued. "I wish I could have been around to see you change. Savio came and told me about you growing up; I always wanted to see you for myself."

"I thought you were dead," I said after a minute of silence. I looked at her golden eyes, shocked by how dark they had become in the past few hours. I put my hand hesitantly through the bars and touched her hand. I felt her power, but I didn't have a name for it. She understood my confusion; Savio must have told her my power.

"I can make others' emotions my own. The fear you're feeling, that's my fear. It's not very useful, except to scare off predators. Apparently, I could do it to an extent as a human, but Aro never realized, nobody did. It's nothing like your power, Maia." She smiled, but I turned my face away. "Don't be ashamed of it. You're a very special woman, you should be proud of that. I know that I am."

"Aro told me you didn't love me enough to stay." A short intake of breath came from Domitilla, and then a sigh.

"Nothing could be farther from the truth." I turned my eyes back to hers. "I hated Aro for what he did to me. It's true, I didn't want to have a vampire's baby. But from the moment that I conceived you, I loved you more than anyone. When I woke up from the transformation Savio was there, telling me what happened. He said I probably was very thirsty, which I was, of course. But I never told him, what I really wanted was _you_. Eventually he got around to telling me that I had a baby girl, your name, and that I would probably never see you. It broke my heart.

"For weeks, Savio didn't understand the sadness that overtook him when he came to visit me. That's how we discovered my talent. I just told him that I was sad that I didn't get to say goodbye to my family. He helped me write a letter to them, telling them I'd run away with him and was happy and in love. It was true, sort of. I was in love, very much so, but certainly not happy. It's strange, but I'm happier now than I ever was. I'm here with my daughter, just talking." She looked at me, her eyes all screwed up like she was crying. She put her hand on my cheek again. Lightly I touched my own hand to hers.

We talked for hours, on the dirty, cold, wet floor of the dungeon. We talked about everything, Domitilla wanted to know about my whole life. She was especially interested in Felix and me. She looked at my engagement ring and actually squealed in delight. It's weird how easily we clicked. I bared my soul to her and she did the same to me. I never had that kind of conversation with Sulpicia, my "adopted" mother, if you will. It felt nice to just be able to talk to my actual mother, now that I knew she was alive and loved me.

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**A/N: **_I appreciate any and all reviews. Let me know if you liked it, hated it, what I could do better! _


	3. Our Lively Lava Love

**A/N: **_So this chapter is a wee bit more M than T, but it's not too bad, I promise. It'll seem like it's bad, but it's not. :) Anywhoodles, thank you to everyone who's put this story on alert/their favorites, etc. I'm glad to see people are reading it! This was a hard chapter to write, lots of ups and downs, I hope you enjoy!_

**Stephenie Meyer owns all Twilight**

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I must have fallen asleep in the middle of a sentence. When I woke up, Domitilla was staring out the window of her cell, holding my hand still. I got up and stretched, disoriented.

"How long was I out for?"

"Only two hours, more of a nap really," she said, not turning her face.

"I probably should go; my dad's probably looking for me." Domitilla nodded, turning away from the dawn that showed in the window.

"I love you so very much, Maia, don't ever forget that." I laughed as I stood up, pulling my hand away from hers.

"I love you, too. Don't worry, I'll come back later, and hopefully with a key next time." I winked and she smiled, but the joy didn't reach her eyes. I shook off her forlornness that gripped at me and ran out of the dungeon and up the stairs. All of a sudden, I just wanted Felix. I wanted to be with him, to share my happiness at meeting my real mother, to celebrate our engagement, our life together. I ran throughout the castle, not using logic to find him.

Eventually I found Felix in his room, repacking. I knocked lightly on the door, even though I knew he knew that I was there. He turned quickly and wrapped me in his arms before I could protest. After a scorching kiss he broke apart, a forced smile on his lips.

"What's that face for, Felix?" He shook his head and started packing again.

"I'll just miss you, is all. J, I've already had to go a month without you, another two days or so is going to suck a lot." I nodded my agreement and wrapped my arms around his waist. I kissed his back, happy to be able to feel all the muscles in it.

"You know Felix, I've never seen your back before." When he turned, I smiled impishly. Without hesitation, he pulled off his shirt.

"Fuck," whooshed out of me at the sight of him bare-chested. He smiled goofily. I walked around him to look at his back. It was perfect, of course. Pale and toned and cool. I ran my fingers on his spine and I swear he shivered.

"You know, J," he said as I tried to take in his perfection, "I've never seen your back before either." I rolled my eyes and handed him back his shirt. Instead he threw it to the side and pushed his suitcase off his bed. He walked forward until I fell back on the bed, with him on top of me. Lightning-quick, he shut his door and came back to hover over me. My heart started to race when his cold hands touched the hem of my shirt and my stomach.

"May I?" I nodded quickly and he slipped the shirt from me. He smiled at my chest, in one of my C. Gilson bras. It paid to have a family obsessed with only the best. His hands moved onto my waist, the cold of them made me gasp. I thought I was used to the cold. He kissed me again, this time the fire that was usually there became more like hot lava. Hot lava on the sun.

His mouth left mine and his lips and tongue traced their way down my jaw and neck. He bit the flesh where my neck met my shoulder lightly. In a primal response, my hands grabbed at his muscular back, pulling him closer to me. He responded by laughing on my throat. One of his hands left my waist and moved to my pants. He pulled on the zipper of my jeans slowly, meeting my eyes for permission.

"Just take them off already!" In a second, they joined his shirt on the ground. Felix was very happy about the amount of skin I now showed, I could see that. He leaned back and took my leg I in his hands and pulled it closer to his shoulder. Very naughtily, he kissed from my ankle down my leg, stopping at the top of my thigh, but his eyes never left mine. He grinned as he kissed me, his hands moving slowly after his mouth, practically torturing me. I could hardly breathe because I was so turned on. Wow, I was actually turned on.

It's not that I wasn't attracted to Felix usually, I was quite a lot. But I guess when you have clothes on, it's way easier to keep lust in check. The only reason I never let Felix touch me above or below the belt was that I didn't know if I'd enjoy it. Turns out, I did.

Once Felix's foray down "Maia's Leg Lane" ended, he pulled me closer to him and kissed me on the mouth. I used one hand to pull off his pants, so we were both just in our underwear. I had a feeling that _this_ was going to go all the way. Just as his hand cupped my butt, a sharp knock on the door resounded.

"Felix, are you almost ready to go," asked Aro innocently. Felix was off of me and dressed faster than I thought possible.

"Yes sir!" In my underwear and bra still, I helped him pack up his tossed aside suitcase. He helped me into my shirt and jeans and we opened the door in less than a minute.

Aro stood in the doorway, clearly very suspicious. He held out a hand to Felix's, but I set his suitcase in it instead. I figured that Aro would learn eventually what happened, he always did, and I didn't want to be around when that came. The trio of us walked down the stairs and to the large garage where seven limos awaited the guard. They weren't going to drive to India, of course, but the limos were going to take them to their private plane.

Felix wrapped me in a bear-hug and whispered into my ear, "We'll pick up where we left off when I get home." His tongue grazed my ear slightly and I shuddered into his hug. He laughed softly and gave me a final squeeze before he got into one of the limos.

Aro waited until everyone was situated before turning to me. "Maia, I'm sorry about everything that happened yesterday. I didn't want to have you see Domitilla and all of that theatrics. I-"

"Daddy, it's fine! I actually got to catch up with Domitilla, and I'm glad I got some things cleared up. You're going to let her out, right?" Aro's face contorted in pain.

"Ahh, Maia. Domitilla left. Before I came to Felix's room, I visited her. I offered to her a place in Volterra, but she wouldn't take it. She left as soon as I unlocked the cell. I am truly sorry that she wouldn't stay, even for you." When he saw that I was about to cry, he held my face in his hands. "Maia Juventas, don't shed tears for her. She doesn't love you; she _can't_ love you as much as I do. _Caramia_, you are my whole life, don't ever forget that."

I nodded and he pecked my forehead. "Bye, Daddy." I waved half-heartedly and he smiled. I stood in the garage until the last limo had left, contemplating Aro's story.

It just didn't make sense. Why would Domitilla lie and tell me she loved me when she didn't? What could she get from that? But, why would Aro lie either? He was my father, he raised me. He never lied to me. _Except that he did_, said the voice in my head. _He told you that she didn't love you, and she does_. I wanted to swipe at the traitorous thoughts that were in my head. I thought that she would leave me a note before she left.

The run to the dungeon took longer than expected. Because I had only been down there the once, it was almost impossible to find again. I rushed down the hall between the cells until I got to hers. True to Aro's word, it was empty. There wasn't much to ransack, but I tried away. After ten minutes of searching, I couldn't find anything. I plopped on the cot, dejected. But from there, I could see something scratched on the window. When I got to the glass, I saw, _UNDER OUR STONE_.

"Under our stone? What the hell does that mean?" I figured it was done by someone before Domitilla, and I turned to leave. Then I saw a tiny fold of paper, sticking out from the stone we sat on earlier that morning. Eagerly I ripped it out and unfolded it.

_Dear Maia,_

_Don't believe Aro, I didn't have a choice. I didn't want to leave you. He told me that I am to be executed in ten minutes. You probably won't even hear my cries. I hope you find this before anyone else does, you deserve to know the truth. I love you, despite what Aro says. I'm glad I could spend my last night with my daughter._

_Love forever, _

_Mom _

It was written with charcoal on worn paper. I figured this was her confessional of sorts. I tore apart the whole dungeon, trying to find her remains. I ran into the open woods behind the castle, looking and smelling for smoke. I didn't catch any trace of an execution. I looked at me feet, dejected, and then I saw a trench of dirt. Like the dragging of a body. It led deeper into the forest, farther than I had checked. I followed the trail, afraid of what I would find.

I didn't run. I didn't want to run. I knew what this trail would lead to. The forest wasn't the usual comforting fairy-tale land it was when I was younger. Now it looked like it was straight out of a horror movie, even in the bright sunshine. I ignored the glow of my skin; it was too cheery for the morbid task I was on. Instead I focused on a clearing in the trees up ahead. I knew I was at least two miles from the castle. The path in the dirt became fainter, like the person had given up.

In the middle of the clearing was a pile of ashes. I stopped short of them and fell to my knees. I never expected to feel that rush of sadness. I didn't try to keep myself from crying, and I let my tears mix in with the last remnants of my real mother. The mother I had only known for a day, the mother that my father had killed.

I laid my body on the ground next to the ashes, staring at them through my tears. Everything began to overwhelm me; my sadness, my anger, my fatigue, my whole life seemed to be defined by that moment. It was when I realized that my father was not the man I thought he was. He was a liar and a murderer.

With that realization my sobs doubled. I put my hand on top of the pile of ashes, letting the morbidity of the action pass over me. I imagined that Domitilla was there, that I had more time with her, my true mother. That we could spend years in the sunshine, maybe in this spot, talking about all the silly things mothers and daughters talk about. I wasn't even sure what those were, but I figured that I would know when the time came. But that fantasy was gone.

Once I stopped crying, I realized with a start that it was night time. I rolled onto my back and looked up at the stars. I'd always enjoyed astronomy, something my father had passed onto me. My eyes prickled again, threatening more water-works, but I got a hold of myself. I took a deep breath and kept the tears away. My hand was still in Domitilla's ashes, but I didn't bother to move it. It was strangely comforting to be touching them. I guess it made it more real, which helped me deal with it. The abstract annoyed me. Death was definitely real when you could feel the product of it.

Somehow, I fell asleep there. It was a dreamless sleep, but not restful. I awoke with dawn. I realized that that was the second time in a row that I fell asleep somewhere that wasn't my bed. I didn't have to energy though to go back to the castle just yet. I was glad that Sulpicia and the rest of the Volturi who stayed behind wouldn't be worried about me. There wasn't much that could hurt me, and no vampires would dare to do that so close to the castle. I stretched and adjusted my shirt, even dirtier from a night on the ground.

The jog to the castle left me somewhat apathetic. After the emotional waterfall that I had the night before, I didn't have much left to show now. Once I was inside the stone walls, I went straight to my room for a hot shower.

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**A/N:**_ Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated! _


	4. Launching My Life Out The Window

**A/N: **_Sorry for the long wait! I was at camp and I didn't have access to a computer! I don't know if I'll be able to finish this story for a long time :( On one hand, I want to, but I also have a novel I'm writing. It's petty of me, but not enough people review or message me, and it's hard to stay excited about a story when I'm the only one that is. I wouldn't resort to saying "I'll only write if I get this many reviews" so who knows. Anyway, here's the fourth chapter, I hope you enjoy it. _

**_Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. _**

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The water passed over my body in a torrent. I didn't turn the cold water faucet at all, so my skin was a light shade of pink. I let the water wash the dirt from my hair and face. I didn't bother trying to process the previous day, I knew no good could come of thinking about it more. Instead, I just enjoyed my shower.

I finally got out of the shower, once I realized that I had been in there for roughly forty minutes. I toweled myself with my fluffiest white towel and wrapped by hair up. When I came into my bed room, I was quite shocked to see Sulpicia sitting on my bed. I didn't scream or anything, I just jumped a little.

"Hey… Mom." I had a hard time choking out that last word. Sulpicia understood and gave a serene nod.

"If you want to call me Sulpicia, I'd understand. Meeting Domitilla must have thrown things a bit off balance. Is that why you slept in the woods last night?" I had gone into my walk-in closet, so my first reaction of _Oh dear_ wasn't seen.

I chirped back, "I just needed to be outside, it was hard to say goodbye to everyone. Seeing the stars… uhh… made me feel closer to them." I slipped on a black vintage Chanel dress and a pair of black pumps. I didn't actually like getting dressed up like this, but Sulpicia expected it of me. I left my closet and she smiled at my ensemble. She also didn't push my response. I knew that she knew that I was lying, but she never pried. I had to give her credit for that; she wasn't interested in butting into my life. Well usually she didn't. I decided not to bring up the wedding.

I blow-dried my hair and Sulpicia looked through my jewelry for matching earrings and a necklace. She picked out my first emerald pendant; she insisted on putting it on me when my hair was dry. Sulpicia still treated me like a doll at every chance. She was plugging in my straightener before I knew it. I let her pull on my locks until they were shiny and straight. I preferred my curls, but Sulpicia seemed to not know that, no matter how many times I told her. With her gift, there was no use arguing anyway, she always got what she wanted.

"There, you look perfect." She kissed my cheek and left the room quickly. I watched myself in the mirror as I plastered on my fake smile. Being without Felix was hard already. And being without Domitilla was hard, too, much to my surprise. I thought about her ashes on the ground in the clearing, and my eyes started to prickle again. I quickly pushed my fingertips onto my eyelids. The tears stopped.

My stomach growled annoyingly, so I went down the basement to get some blood. I heated it up in the small incubator we had and poured it into a wine glass. The smell of it was heavenly and I drank it quickly. I was super excited for the day that Aro would finally let me join him in the tower when the tourists came. But, for now, wine glasses of blood were good enough.

After I finished my breakfast, I went up to the tower to join Sulpicia and Athenadora. The two were talking happily, chatting about wedding details. In front of them was spread hundreds of bridal magazines, swatches of color, flower arrangements, anything you could think of for a wedding. There was even a whole catalogue devoted to honeymoon lingerie, causing a blush to spread on my cheeks. The women looked up when I came in, and Sulpicia smiled happily.

"Oh Maia, we've found so many great options for wedding dresses, come see!" I begrudgingly went to sit next to her. She showed me over a hundred of her options in the next hour, not bothering to ask my approval. It hit me that _this_ was something mothers and daughters were supposed to do together. I thought about Domitilla, the person I really wanted to look at wedding catalogues with.

And more than anything, I just wanted to talk about. I would have preferred Felix to pour my heart to, but I had to settle with Sulpicia. "Sulpicia," I said quietly, "can we just talk for a minute?"

"Of course, sweetheart," she replied, setting down her magazine. She turned her full attention to me, which was a bit daunting.

"I know what really happened to Domitilla." I blurted that out without any thought to her reaction. Athenadora looked at me, shocked, and abruptly glided from the room. Sulpicia narrowed her crimson eyes slightly, but that was all.

She said lightly, "Maia, Domitilla is the past, forget about her!" She gave my hands a squeeze and started to turn back to her magazine. I grabbed her hand before she could reach for it though.

"I can't just forget about her! Why did Aro kill her?"

"She was a liar!" Sulpicia shouted. I was taken aback by her shouting, she was usually calm. I must have hit a nerve though, because she started to rant. "She used poor Savio, manipulating him and she was his downfall! She tried to coerce your father into taking you with her, to 'see the world'. All she wanted to do was get revenge, I know! She was a horrible human, and an even worse vampire! She deserved it!" I gave a shout of outrage, but I had nothing to say in reply.

Sulpicia realized that her words hurt me, so she said, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to blow up on you like that, Maia. I'll just… I'll just leave you be." She stood up and left the room gracefully.

I sunk to the ground and started to cry. I let myself sob for awhile, taking in Sulpicia's hateful words and letting my anger grow. Then I thought about Aro, and how he lied to me. How Felix told me not to worry about Savio. How my whole life everyone had coddled me, watched me, waiting for me to fit into their perfect lifestyle neatly and quietly. How I was just a commodity to all of them.

I didn't feel like crying anymore. I felt like punching a hole in the wall. Or someone's face, I wasn't really worried about _what_ I punched. I tore up a whole catalogue into tiny little pieces and walked over to the window. I was about to toss them down when I saw two people below. It was a young woman, probably around twenty, with her mother. Their conversation drifted up to me and I listened intensely.

"You promise you'll be careful, Lena?" The older woman handed her daughter her bags, checking to make sure they were zipped and snapped. I recognized them as our neighbors, a family who lived just next door to the castle, who I had never actually met.

"Of course, Mama! I'll take lots of pictures," replied Lena, as she pulled on her jacket. I saw the shuttle that took people to the airport pull in front our castle.

"Especially in Paris!" Mrs. Vitti kissed her daughter goodbye and stood waving as the bus departed.

I found it unfair that Lena Vitti, breakable mortal Lena got to travel the world, and I was stuck in Volturi.

Well I wasn't stuck. It's not like there was a security system or watch dogs. In theory, we could come and go as we pleased. Aro would never just let me leave though. _But he's not here_, I thought. The only people still in the castle were Sulpicia and Athenodora. Two, elderly vampires who had no way of tracking me if I left. Demetri would have a hard time trying to find someone when the trail was two days old. I could travel the world, like Lena. And nobody could stop me.

I was instantly energized by the idea and I tore to my room. I felt like a character in a novel, trying to run away from a bad life, though mine wasn't all that bad. Still, I quickly packed, throwing random my clothes into a bag, until I realized that wasn't very practical. Packing for running away was a lot harder task than I had thought. I picked a few outfits, outfits I gardened in, tough, durable outfits. Once I had those folded in my bag, I made my way to my jewelry shelf.

That was a lot harder than clothes. I may not care how my body was clothed, but jewelry was one of my favorite things. I had nine beautiful emerald pendants, plus tons of other jewelry that the Volturi had given me over the years. I had over two hundred rings to choose from. I looked at the engagement ring on my left hand, knowing I had to take that. I decided that three necklaces, ten rings, five bracelets, and six hair clips was reasonable. Oh, and ten pairs of earrings. Maybe twelve.

"No, you have to choose!" I whispered to myself. I carefully unclasped the pendant I was wearing, and packed an emerald and diamond necklace Felix had given me for Christmas the year before and a ruby necklace with the Volturi crest on it. It took me two hours to decide what to take, but I finally put it all in one of the jewelry bags I had, and snapped a lock onto it.

I also needed money. I knew that we as the Volturi were filthy rich. The only problem was finding actual bills to take. I knew I couldn't use credit cards or checks because those could be traced back, and I couldn't remove any from our accounts because everyone would know. I had to get money from somewhere, in different currencies, too. I didn't ask Sulpicia, she would be suspicious. I quickly ran through the whole castle, avoiding Sulpicia and Athenadora, hoping to find a safe.

No such luck. I had never actually handled money in my life; I just asked Aro if I needed to buy something. So I had no idea if we even had money lying around "just in case". So I had to make a choice between asking Sulpicia where the money was and leaving without it. It didn't seem very practical to run away without a little bit of money, but I didn't really have another option. I decided to go without it, against my common sense. _I can do this without money_, I said to myself, and ran back to my room.

I looked at my bag, stuffed full with clothes and jewelry. The sun was beginning to set; I had to leave as soon as possible. I looked out the window in my bedroom, checking to see if there was anyone below. The coast was clear; I dropped my bag straight down so I could get it when I left. I ran into my bathroom and packed an old backpack with the essentials. I wanted to grab my hair supplies too, but I couldn't afford to be picky. I dropped that bag down quickly, too and I changed into my gardening clothes, making sure that I placed my dress back neatly and the jewelry back as well. I threw my hair into a ponytail, knowing it would be easier to run if it was out of the way.

I realized that I had to write a note. I settled at my desk and took about a piece of my personal stationary. I wasn't sure who to write to. For some reason, I didn't want to write to everyone, or even to most of them. Aro was the only person I wanted to say goodbye to.

It was hard to find the words to write. How was I supposed to say goodbye to the man who raised me, who I never doubted until now? My eyes welled up again and I wiped them away angrily. I wrote the first thoughts that came to mind, before I broke down again.

_Dear Dad,_

_I'm so sorry, I'm so, so sorry that I'm not here. I just couldn't stay any longer, not after everything that happened. After you… lied to me. I'm sorry, but I'm not coming back. Don't look for me, even I don't know where I'm going. I can't live here anymore. I'll take care of myself, I promise. Tell Felix that I love him, and I'm sorry. I can't be your little girl anymore. _

_Love,_

_Maia _

With black ink on white paper, it seemed so severe. But I didn't have time to waste. The Volturi were supposed to come back the next day, and I wanted to be as far as possible before they did. I left the letter on my desk, trusting that Aro would find it. As I made my way from the room, I caught my reflection in the mirror.

My eyes were red from all of the crying, but I looked regular besides. Pieces of my hair had fallen out of my ponytail and framed my face. My clothes were a little big for me, and worn, but I preferred them that way. For a second, I looked like a regular girl, like I was Lena Vitti, leaving her family to see the world, but planning on coming back. I knew I couldn't come back, not after everything that had happened in the past few days.

I went into Sulpicia's office, knocking lightly on the door as I entered. She was sitting on her couch, reading a romance novel. I took a deep breath and lied, "Hey Mom, I'm going to garden for awhile. I might sleep in there; it's supposed to be a gorgeous night." Sulpicia nodded and smiled, then returned to her book. Lying was so easy, I almost felt bad. My family never had any reason to distrust me, so any little lie I told went unnoticed. I made my way down to the doors of the castle.

My bags sat by the door, and I picked them up as quietly as possible. I pulled the backpack on and held the bag tightly in my hand. With a final look back, I started to run to the edge of the grounds, about a mile away. It only took me a minute and a half to reach it. Once I was there, I looked at the road that ran by it. If I followed it, I could get to the train station and somehow get myself on a train.

I had a moment of hesitation then. Could I really leave behind everything and everyone that I knew? I had no knowledge of the outside world except for in the stories Caius made me read. I didn't know if I was ready to leave it all behind and find my own path.

But I was sure going to try. I didn't look back before I ran down the road to the station.

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**A/N: **_Reviews? Please please please?_


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